Adult ASD and Social/Nonsocial Cognitive Impairment

JAMA Psychiatry; ePub 2019 Jan 2; Velikonja, et al

Alzheimer's & Cognition for January/February 2019

Results of a recent meta-analysis suggest that adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show impairments in social cognitive domains and in specific nonsocial cognitive domains. These findings contribute to the understanding of the patterns of cognitive functioning in adults with ASD and may assist in the identification of targets for cognitive interventions. A literature search performed in an academic medical setting was conducted and was limited to studies published between 1980 (first inclusion of autism diagnosis in the DSM-III) and July 2018. Of 9,892 articles identified and screened, 75 met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review and meta-analysis. Researchers found: